Tag: Pumpkin

Ok, so if you read my last post, you’ll know how much I love fall! This morning we woke up to a very chilly morning and I thought that nothing sounded better for breakfast than a nice big bowl of tummy-filling, and soul-warming oatmeal. Mmmmm! 🙂

After I climbed out from under the mountain of comforters on our bed and threw on my favorite sweats and sweatshirt, I made my way into the kitchen to gather my ingredients. I remembered that I had some leftover pumpkin puree in the fridge, so why not make warm pumpkin oatmeal, right?!?

This recipe was an experiment..but it turned out wonderfully and so delicious! It is also really easy!!

So here is what I gathered for this recipe:

1/2 Cup old fashioned oats

1 Cup water

1/8 cup pumpkin puree

1/2 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice

1/4 teaspoon vanilla

1/8 teaspoon salt

1 tablespoon brown sugar

1 teaspoon Chia seeds

1/8 cup dried plums

In a saucepan over medium heat, combine the oats, water, pumpkin puree, pumpkin pie spice, vanilla, and salt. Stir and cook for 3-5 minutes until thick and the oats are soft.

Place in a bowl and top with brown sugar (or your favorite sweetener), Chia seeds, and dried plums (dried cranberries would be yummy, too!).

WARNING: You are about to read about a delicious and easy, sweet fall treat that is not low calorie or “healthy” and LOADED with marshmallowy, pumpkin goodness. Sometimes we just need something a little naughty….and what could be better than a bite of fall!

There is something so lovely about fall…It’s easily my favorite season for various reasons. I love fall for the beautiful colors that mother nature dresses herself in. The oranges, reds, pinks, yellows, and greens blend together like the fabric of a beautiful dress and it’s often breathtaking.

I also love the cooler temperatures. Now, I’m not a fan of winter or cold. At all. BUT I LOVE sweatpants, sweatshirts, sweaters, blankets, and all things comfy and cozy. I love to sleep with the window open at night and snuggle close under a mountain of deliciously warm comforters and blankets, or sit on the couch under a cozy blanket in front of the fireplace ablaze with a crackling fire. Makes me feel nice and warm just thinking about it. 🙂

I also love throwing on my favorite old sweatshirt with jeans or a new cozy sweater and boots and going for a drive in the fall to see mother nature in all her beauty and to find new fall faves. We did this last weekend. Since moving to Michigan, we’ve heard about many of the things this state is known for…and one of those things is a must-do in the fall. We went to visit a local Cider Mill for some fresh apple cider and warm cinnamon-sugar donuts.

These donuts and apple cider were yummy!! I can see why they are a fall fave of Michiganders. So after our Cider Mill outing, I decided I wanted to make one of my fall faves….pumpkin crispy rice treats. (Mac prefers the regular crispy rice treats, so I made those too….I’ll share both recipes with you.)

There is something so warm and comforting about the taste of pumpkin and pumpkin spice and that is what makes these treats so special… 🙂

Pumpkin Crispy Rice Treats

**You can find the original recipe here, but as usual, I made a change or two.

What You’ll Need:

3 tablespoons butter, plus more to grease the pan

1/4 cup canned pumpkin puree

1 (16 oz) bag regular marshmallows

3 cups mini marshmallows

1/4 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/8 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice

1/8 teaspoon salt

6 cups crispy rice cereal

fall colored sprinkles

Butter a 9×13-inch baking dish and set aside.

In a couple layers of paper towel, place the pumpkin puree and press to release the moisture. (I usually press the puree about 3 times using fresh, dry paper towels each time. If you don’t do this, your treats will be soggy….trust me). It should look like this:

In a heavy saucepan or cast iron pot, melt butter over medium-low heat.

Add the pumpkin puree and cook until it is warmed through (it will be lumpy). Fold in the 16 oz. of marshmallows, stirring frequently until almost completely melted. Stir in vanilla, cinnamon, pumpkin pie spice and salt. Remove from heat.

Allow the marshmallow mixture to cool for 10 minutes. Fold in 1 1/2 cups of the mini marshmallows and let the mixture cool for about another 5-10 minutes. Add in the crispy rice cereal and the last 1 1/2 cups of mini marshmallows. Stir until combined.

Press into the baking dish and sprinkle with fall colored sprinkles. (See tip below.) Allow to cool completely before cutting. Makes 12 Large crispy treats, or more if you cut them smaller. 🙂

The pumpkin treats are on the right and I’m a dummy and forgot to take a picture after I cut them, but here is a picture of the regular crispy treats cut into squares:

Look at all of that crispy, marshmallowy goodness!! YUM! 🙂

The recipe I follow for the regular crispy rice treats is from The Pioneer Woman, Ree Drummond. The recipe is here. I follow this recipe for the most part except that I use a 16 oz. bag of regular marshmallows, and the rest of the bag of mini marshmallows from the recipe above.

TIP(Thanks to my mother-in-law 🙂 ): In order to easily press the crispy rice mixture into the pan, turn the empty marshmallow bag inside-out and spread butter on the bag. Slide the inside-out bag over your hand like a glove and use your “gloved” hand to press the mixture into the pan. You may think this sounds crazy, but it’s so much easier than trying to press it into the pan with a spatula. 🙂

What is your favorite season? Do you love fall as much as I do?

Oh, one more things about fall that I LOVE…my Birthday is in the fall!! 🙂 🙂